Got Milk? B.C. mom answers love-inspired call for breastmilk

When Natasha Brenko had her son seven months ago, she quickly learned that breastfeeding was going to be a challenge.

What the Kelowna woman didn’t know, however, was that the solution she found for a short-term problem could one day bring relief to other mothers in worse circumstances.

“When my second son was born he had a tongue tie, and I had to exclusively pump and feed,” she said.

In the first two to three months of pumping, Brenko had produced enough milk to ensure her son was well nourished and then some.

She had an extra 13 litres of breast milk that were immediately packed up and put in her freezer.

In the months that followed Brenko’s son’s tongue-tie was fixed and he was able to breastfeed. She realized that he’s more than able to get the milk he needs to flourish, but there was no way she was going to get rid of her stockpile of “liquid gold.”

“Many moms who deliver preterm babies do not produce milk right away or have enough, studies have shown that breastmilk provides needed antibodies for babies to fight infections which is critical for preemies,” said a representative from BC Women’s.

To get women in a donating frame of mind they sent out a call to action that tied in to the day of love.

”We were thinking for Valentine’s Day, it would be a good opportunity to remind moms to give something close to the heart: mother’s milk (breastmilk),” said the representative.

Brenko offered her milk before the call for donations because she knows how important it is to be supported during the early days of having a child.

“Parents in that situation are already in a difficult position and if you can take away a little bit of that stress, why not?” she said.

She also said that if she was ever on the receiving end she wouldn’t hesitate to pull from its reserves.